A New Twist on Thanksgiving Dessert - Pumple Pie!

Even though my gourmet group last night had an anti-Thanksgiving theme (I made frozen mojito cakes), talk invariably came around to what we planned to make for Thanksgiving. I realized I've got to share with all of you the delicious pie I tried last year.

Pumpple pie, aside from having one of the most ridiculous names ever, is a terrific mash-up of pumpkin and apple. Because I know how many gajillion different things you'll be prepping for this day, I'm going to go ahead and tell you to use two store-bought, roll out pie crust doughs. Why spend the time making your own (unless you truly want to, of course). This recipe comes from The Kitchen's 2008 Best Pie Bakeoff. I promise this will be a big hit!

Ingredients for the Apple Filling5 cups sliced, peeled and cored apples (use Fuji)
2.5 tablespoon, unsalted butter
3/4 cup, packed light brown sugar
1/3 cup, water
1 tsp, cornstarch
1.5 tsp, ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp, salt
1 tsp, lemon juice
Directions
1. In a 1.5 qt medium saucepan, combine butter, brown sugar, water, cornstarch, cinnamon and salt.
2. Stir over medium heat until mixture comes to a boil.
3. Stir in sliced apples; cook until tender - about 8 - 10 minutes - stirring occasionally.
4. Remove from heat and stir in lemon juice. Spread apple mixture evenly on the bottom of the piecrust.

Ingredients for the Pumpkin Filling1/2 cup, sugar
1 cup, canned pumpkin
1 slightly beaten egg
1 tsp, cinnamon
1 tsp, pumpkin pie spice
2/3 cup, evaporated milk
Directions
1. In a medium bowl, combine sugar, pumpkin, egg, cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice and salt. Whisk until blended. Stir in evaporated milk. Carefully pour pumpkin mixture over apples. Cover with 2nd pie crust, crimp edges and cut a few steam vents.
2. Cover edges of crust with foil to prevent over browning. Bake at 375 degrees for 20 minutes. Remove foil and bake 25 minutes or until a knife inserted in center comes out clean.
3. Cool pie thoroughly on a rack at least 2 hours to set. Serve with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream. Securely cover and keep in refrigerator for up to a week.

Hungry Hearts Holiday Hop - Thanksgiving Edition!

Welcome to the HUNGRY HEARTS HOLIDAY HOP!

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My contribution to this is an Italian stuffed turkey breast. This is a great alternative to a big turkey - it is perfect for two to four people who don't want a week's worth of leftovers. Plus, it is an elegant take on turkey that you can serve year round. Gibson Moore, my hero from Friends To Lovers, is from England and doesn't really get the fanatic devotion to carving up a 25 lb carcass at the table. He far prefers this elegant twist on tradition. Plus, it involves the word breast, which, as an unabashed Casanova, he always appreciates.

This is based on a Giada De Laurentiis recipe, but I've made some tweaks. If you aren't serving on Thanksgiving, a nice side dish is risotto.

Serves: 4 to 6
Ingredients
8 ounces sweet Italian sausage, removed from casing
1/2 cup seasoned bread crumbs or panko
1/2 cup broth
1/4 cup shredded parmesan
5 ounces prosciutto or pancetta (your choice!), finely diced
8 oz. chopped mushrooms
1/2 cup diced green olives
2 tablespoons chopped fresh sage or 2 teaspoons dried
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 (2-pound) boneless turkey breast
Extra-virgin olive oil, for drizzling
Special equipment: kitchen twine

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

In a bowl, combine the sausage, prosciutto, mushrooms, olives and sage. Season with salt and pepper. Heat a small skillet and add a teaspoon of the stuffing. Saute until cooked through, about 2 minutes. Taste for seasoning and adjust seasoning in the stuffing mix, if necessary. Mix in the broth, bread crumbs and parmesan to bind it all together.

Place the turkey breast on the cutting board with skin side down. Pound it flat, season with salt and pepper and drizzle with olive oil to moisten. Spread stuffing on top and roll the turkey around the stuffing. Wrap kitchen twine around breast and tie tightly.

Place turkey in a roasting pan, drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Roast until internal temperature of the turkey breast is 165 degrees F, about 1 hour or 12 to 15 minutes per pound.

Let rest 10 minutes, then snip off kitchen twine. Slice the turkey and arrange decoratively on serving platter. Pour pan juices over the slices and serve.

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